1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital information input system, and more specifically to a digital information input system including an input apparatus such as a digital camera for capturing a motion picture or a still picture, and a personal computer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, image data and sound data, etc., captured by a digital camera have been recorded on a recording device such as a flash memory incorporated in the digital camera or on a recording medium detachable from the digital camera.
Also, a system has been proposed and made into commercial products in which a digital camera and an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer (hereinafter PC) are connected, for example, via a cable, so that information such as image data recorded on an internal recording device of the digital camera or a recording medium detachable from the digital camera can be transferred to the PC.
For example, in a system in which a PC and a digital camera are connected, a list of image data recorded on a recording medium on the digital camera can be displayed on the PC for the user, so that an image specified by the user can be transferred and stored or displayed on the PC.
In another system, by an operation of an input apparatus such as a digital camera connected to a PC, image information is recorded in the input apparatus, and the image information which has been recorded is then transferred and stored or displayed on the PC.
Furthermore, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-137796 by the assignee of this application, a system is proposed in which an input apparatus is connected to a PC so that image information which has been captured can be directly transferred to the PC without storing the image information in the input apparatus.
In the conventional systems in which a digital camera is connected to a PC, however, the input apparatus such as the digital camera typically has an operation unit for switching to a PC connection mode, so that the user uses the digital camera in connection with the PC after entering the PC connection mode by operating the operation unit, allowing operation only from the PC while prohibiting operation of the input apparatus when the connection is on. Even if the operation unit for entering the PC connection mode is not provided on the input apparatus, upon a connection being made between the PC and the input apparatus, for example, via a cable, operation of the input apparatus has typically been prohibited while allowing operation only from the PC.
This is primarily because it is difficult to maintain data consistency between the input apparatus such as a digital camera and an application software on the PC when a change is made to information in the input apparatus by an operation of the input apparatus while the information in the input apparatus is being referenced or used by the PC.
Furthermore, even if a system allows capturing of an image both from a PC and an information input apparatus such as a camera connected to the PC, because the capture sequence initiated by the PC and the capture sequence initiated by the camera have been different, the load of an application software on the PC has been large, and it has been difficult to equivalently handle, for example, the process of transferring a captured image directly to the PC without recording the image on a recording medium such as a flash memory on the camera.
That is, in a system in which an input apparatus is connected to a PC, the user suffers from increased system restrictions compared to the case where the input apparatus is individually alone.
As communications go increasingly wireless, it is desired that the user be allowed to exchange information transparently between an information processing apparatus such as a PC and an information input apparatus such as a digital camera.